| Ipswich Town 3 v 0 Bristol Rovers FA Cup Sunday, 12th January 2025 Kick-off 15:00 |  |
McKenna: Really Good Performance Sunday, 12th Jan 2025 18:51 Town boss Kieran McKenna was delighted with his team’s display as they beat League One Bristol Rovers 3-0 at Portman Road to progress to round four of the FA Cup. First-half goals from Kalvin Phillips, Jack Clarke and Jack Taylor saw the Blues to a comfortable win. “I think it was a really good performance, individually and collectively,” McKenna said. “The first half was a really good game and I thought we played really well. “We scored good goals, could have scored more, gave very little away and managed the game well in the second half. So through to the next round and a good day for us.” Summer additions Phillips, who is on loan from Manchester City, and Clarke were scoring for the club for the first time. “Lovely finish from Kalvin to start with,” McKenna said. “And nice for any forward player to get their first goal of the season, so nice for Jack and I thought those two played well as well.” Taylor’s goal looked well offside but unlike in the Premier League the incident not going to review. “Nice to have no three-minute check with VAR!” McKenna smiled. “I’ve not seen it back, so if it went our way we’ll be happy about that. “Jack took it well and I thought he played well in the sort of higher up right 10 role for us. I thought he played well and linked very well with Wes in the first half and played well throughout.” Ali Al-Hamadi spurned a chance to make it 4-0 in the second half when he scuffed a penalty wide, but McKenna was pleased with the Iraqi international’s overall performance on only his second start of the season. “I thought he did a lot of good work, his work off the ball was outstanding, some of his back-to-goal play, link-up was really, really good,” he said. “That’s the life of a striker, he’s a good penalty taker, so it’s not like him to not catch one cleanly, but I thought he played really well and really helped the team.” Ben Godfrey, whose loan signing from Serie A side Atalanta was confirmed last Sunday, came in for his debut on the right side of the defence and McKenna was pleased with what he saw from the former Norwich City and Everton man. “I thought he did well,” he said. “Didn’t have too much defending to do, but won some good challenges, showed good recovery pace for the tackle in the second half and had some good bursts forward with the ball and more runs without the ball as well into the penalty box in the first half. “I’m sure he’s going to get better and better the longer he spends with us but it was a good start.” Phillips was the sponsors’ Man of the Match with the England international netting his first goal since scoring for City in a Champions League tie away against Red Star Belgrade in December 2023. “I thought he played well,” McKenna said. “I thought both he and Massimo [Luongo] in midfield were very good considering Massimo hasn’t played in quite a while as well. “Kalvin’s in a good position, he’s growing in confidence and rhythm and I thought he showed his quality today, as did Massimo, in midfield and they both linked up with their teammates really well.” Looking back at Phillips’s campaign so far, he added: “I think he’s had a really solid first half of the season, to be honest. There’s always going to be a different perception on Kalvin because he’s come from Man City but he’s a normal person, he’s a very good players, like other very good players that we’ve got, who is trying his best in his career, which, like all careers, has got highs and lows. “He came in without having had a pre-season with us, played quite a lot of games at the start, maybe eight or nine games in a row, so if you compare that to Premier League starts that he’s had in the two years before that, it’s quite a lot. “Then he got sent off [against Leicester] and had an injury where he missed a few weeks and for a couple of weeks after that, wasn’t really ready to start. “And then over the Christmas period has started to pick up some more minutes. Played well at Arsenal and had a good couple of appearances off the bench and has now played very well in the cup. “I think he’s improving, growing in confidence, growing in fitness, growing in the understanding of his role in the team and what we ask of him here, and I think he’s making some good steps and progressing well.” Left-back Conor Townsend made only his third appearance for the club since signing from West Brom in the summer, his second start and his home debut. The 31-year-old impressed his manager, particularly with the way he dovetailed with Jack Clarke down the left. “He played really well in the Carabao Cup as well at AFC Wimbledon,” the Town manager recalled. “Conor is a top professional, trains well every day and he plays the game properly, so it’s enjoyable to watch him, he does things right on and off the ball and takes care of the details and has good concentration and has real good quality in his left foot. “I enjoyed his performance, I enjoyed his relationship with Jack Clarke, those two, because they haven’t started as many matches, have spent a lot of time in training together working on the things and working on their relationship, and I thought that was clear to see today. “They had a really good wavelength and understanding down that left-hand side, so good for the pair of them and good for Conor to get the minutes and he showed that he’s ready and showed what a good player he is.” Local boy and academy product Luke Woolfenden, the only player who played in last Sunday’s 2-2 draw at Fulham, skippered for the first time with regular captain Sam Morsy on the bench. “Nice for him, it should never be underestimated to captain your hometown club,” McKenna said. “I know he’s had a lot of things and now he’s playing in the Premier League for his hometown club, but to captain for the first time was a nice thing to be bestow upon him and he’s deserved it and a nice little landmark for him.” As was the case last season, when the Blues had a four-round run in the Carabao Cup, McKenna made 10 changes but with the team still playing fluent football. “I think that’s a really good sign for the group,” the Northern Irishman reflected. “We’ve had that for the last few years on different occasions where in cup competitions we’ve been able to change the whole team and, it hasn’t always worked out, but very often we’ve been able to produce very cohesive performances still and have players ready to come into the team and be match ready and fully understanding their roles. “When you can make changes like we did today and look as cohesive as we did in the first half especially, I think that’s a big, big positive for the group, and especially when you consider quite a few of that group have been here for a few years but there’s also quite a few of that group who have been here for a few months and you can see are starting to settle in, and Ben Godfrey’s only been here for a few days. “In those circumstances, to look as cohesive as we did on and off the ball, I think that’s a good sign for the direction that the group’s travelling in.” Having gone most of the season without a win at Portman Road, the Blues have now been victorious in two on the bounce, 2-0 against Chelsea and then this afternoon. “I think they’re two competitions, two different contexts, but, as I’ve said, I’ve felt it in training, not just today, not just the Chelsea game or the Fulham game, I think the group’s progressing,” he said. “I can see it training, I can see individuals growing in different ways. Players who haven’t played at the level, players today who came from League One not so long ago that have really grown and pushed to another level. “I see players who have come here and are really starting to settle in and understand their teammates, how they can be effective in our team and our club, and I think the group’s making good progress. “But, of course, we’ve got to keep doing that, we’ve got to keep showing that and we’ve got to keep fighting for performances and results. It was nice to get another one today but we’ll park that and we’ll get ready for Brighton.”
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